What’s going to happen to all the marble once it’s removed from First Canadian Place? Is there any chance I could buy some of it?
It’s true, Toronto’s tallest office tower will soon be rid of 6,000-odd tons of Carrara marble, to be replaced by glass panels. The main reason for the $100‑million-plus facelift is safety. In 2007, a 300-pound chunk plummeted from the tower’s 60th storey onto the roof of the third-floor mezzanine. Hazards aside, 35 winters have turned the once snow white stone the colour of slush.
If you’re still keen to own a part of the city’s architectural past, Brookfield Properties, the building manager, hopes to make some of it available to the public for free in the spring. The rest of it will be recycled, crushed into rooftop ballast (a heavy layer that secures roof insulation) or donated to a local art group.
• Question from Maury Neufeld, Mississauga
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If you are still interested, there are 10 000 units of the marble available for purchase through sustainabuild canada. They are located in Alberta, but can be contacted through their website . The slabs (48″ x 26″ x 2.25″ – weighing approx 150 lbs each) are being stored in Scarborough – you have to make an appointment to view them there. They are $30.00 each, but you have to buy a minimum of 20.
Countdown to walk?
Several of the new pedestrian walk countdown signals installed around city intersections have a very confusing feature–they actually count down to the solid white “walking pedestrian” signal as opposed to the expected orange “don’t walk hand” signal. What is the reason for this?
So I was thinking, what’s scarier, a 300lbs chunk of marble falling from horrid heights or a 100lbs of glass falling from the same height? I think I’d rather be around buildings not so tall.